This is a work of fiction of Neon Genesis Evangelion. I do not have any ownership, stock, or connections to Gainax, Production IG, Studio Khara, Kadokawa, or Studio Kai.
NEON GENESIS SUPER CUB
Chapter 4
How did it go so badly?
Oh, yeah... He walked in on Rei Ayanami right after her shower.
The pilot of Unit-01, Shinji Ikari, was given the new identification card for the pale-skinned girl from the Head of Project E, Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, the night before. The boy was very hopeful that he would have been able to overcome his nervousness and give his coworker a ride to NERV on the second seat of his light-blue Super Cub.
The boy entered the apartment after he noticed that the doorbell was broken and the front door was unlocked. After taking in the dreary surroundings he looked to the top of her dresser drawer where he noticed a pair of broken glasses that did not look like hers. After putting them on Rei exited the restroom covered only in a towel on her shoulders. She walked briskly to the younger Ikari and pulled the glasses from his face. He then comically slipped on the grime on the floor and landed on her nude form. What held his gaze was not her lack of clothing but the unwavering stare of her crimson eyes looking upon his waiting for him to move so she could continue her morning routine; she had her reactivation with Unit-00 at NERV.
He finally stood to allow her to move; he turned to look away and told the azure-haired girl about her new ID card. She told him to place it on the counter in a voice that didn't show that she was necessarily upset at him for his actions. He did as he was told and left the apartment quickly. The boy took a moment to calm his breathing before walking downstairs to his Cub to begin his lonely trek to NERV.
The entire drive consisted of him downing himself, saying that she definitely hated him and would never want to speak to him again. He wished he had the ability to listen to music through his motorcycle helmet; his thoughts were almost too much for his heart to bear at the moment.
Maybe he could apologize to her after her activation test with Unit-00.
Hopefully nothing would go wrong…
(Musical Reference: Kreisleriana, Op. 16: 7. Sehr rasch by Robert Schumann)
[The entire scenery looked to be like it was set in an old black and white movie.]
Shinji could hear something in the distance… It was the sound of a girl screaming! [Could he really hear it though? Everything seemed so quiet…] He looked and saw Rei being carried by the bearded and evil Grimoire Gendo. Oh, how he despised that dastardly man! She, dressed in a Western, Victorian-era dress, beat at the man's back with her petite hands, but it was no use. His strong arms carried her to the railroad tracks where he placed and tied her down. The boy could not believe the bearded villain could be so cold-hearted. The boy had to do something.
["I'll save you, Ayanami!"]
[Did he really say that? Or was it words on a black screen?]
He jumped on his trusty Super Cub and rode towards the tracks. In the distance he could see a 0 series Shinkansen bullet train heading towards Rei. The 35-1… Always on time, that one! [Why did it seem to be going slower than it should, though?]
The boy zipped through afternoon traffic, breaking multiple laws in the process.
Too late… his driving antics caught the attention of the sleepy Officer Katsuragi. She would NOT put up with this ruckus! She mounted her own Super Cub in hot pursuit of the deviant boy.
He looked back and saw the officer getting closer to him. He didn't like being in trouble with the law, especially with Officer Katsuragi. But he had to save the blue-haired girl! [Blue hair? Or white hair? He couldn't really tell with this black and white setup.]
Up ahead looked to be a dead end: market vendors blocked the straight path to the tracks; if he took another route he would arrive too late to save her. He saw something nearby: a wooden cart tilted down… It would make the perfect ramp! Increasing the throttle, he almost knocked down an elderly man carrying an armful of cabbages as he hit the ramp and jumped over the entire market area. [Was this even possible?!] Landing on the other side he rode onward; Officer Katsuragi skidded sideways to a stop in front of a fruit vendor shaking her fist in the air with a scowl and barrage of words .
["Curses! I'll get you for this, Shinji-kun!"]
He could 'hear' the girl's screams over the Cub's engine…he was getting close, so was the shinkansen!
He made it to the tracks, hopped off his motorcycle, and knelt down next to the girl crying at him.
["Please save me!"]
Shinji could not untie the ropes! Grimoire Gendo's navy background was good for something after all. The boy felt for anything in his pockets that could be of use. He shoved his hand in his right pant pocket and pulled out an odd shaped knife that looked like it was glowing. [Where did that come from?!] It was hot enough to burn through the ropes and cut them easily. He pulled Rei away from the tracks in time before the 35-1 reached him; the train's occupants opened their windows yelling at the boy who held the saved girl in his arms.
["Way to go, son!"]
The girl turned to the boy and spoke at length about something that he just couldn't hear for some reason…
["My hero!"]
She closed the distance towards the boy and gave him a deep kiss. Steam left Shinji's ears at the girl's actions. They then both leapt onboard his Super Cub; she gripped onto his back as they rode onward towards the sunset.
The boy's eyes opened and looked to the 'familiar' ceiling of the hospital room he was currently in. What the heck just happened?! Oh… He remembered now. He was shot to the surface to fight the Angel when a beam of light hit his Eva in the chest causing him to both feel the mech's pain as well as nearly boil himself alive in the super heated LCL. He passed out as he was pulled back down under the city and was rushed into emergency surgery.
He looked to his left side to see the girl of his dreams, quite literally. Rei Ayanami stood behind a rolling cart that carried a tray of food and a spare plugsuit. She pulled a small notebook from the skirt pocket of her school uniform and read to him the time table for the events that would lead towards the destruction of the diamond-shaped Angel that was currently drilling its way down towards the Geofront. He listened to her and took in everything she said, even the offhand comment about his current state of being uncovered by the hospital linen. With a severe blush he covered himself and apologized. "Ayanami… I didn't get to apologize to you about this morning. I honestly didn't mean to walk in on you like that. I just hope…" It was hard for him to say what he needed… to just let the words out. "I just hope you don't hate me, Ayanami, for what happened. I would understand if you did."
A long silent moment hung in the air as he awaited her response. "I do not hate you, Ikari-kun. What happened was an accident, nothing more. Please do not worry yourself over this, especially with the operation currently at hand."
The boy allowed a small smile to grace himself. "Thank you…Ayanami… That means more to me than you think." He thought about where he felt he was with this mysterious girl up to that point. Yes, there was more he wanted to say, but that could wait for now. With those words from her, he found the strength he needed to face the threat that loomed. "I'll eat, and I'll be ready."
His hands burned so much! But he had to know if she was alright. Rei had placed herself in front of Shinji, buying as much time as possible while the sniper gun he was using recharged for a second shot against the octahedron Angel that focused its high energy shot in their direction. After the successful second shot, Unit-00 fell to the ground. Shinji's Unit-01 ripped the back armor of Rei's Eva off to allow the entry plug to drain the heated LCL. He then exited his Evangelion and dropped to the ground running to clutch the butterfly grips and turn them to open the hatch.
"Ayanami?! Are you alright?!" He yelled her name as he looked in at her frail form still gripping the controls of her Eva. Even though he chastised her for saying 'Goodbye' before the mission, he was so relieved that she was alive. After smiling for him, he took her hand and helped her out of the entry plug. They sat together looking outwards towards the burning corpse of the Angel in the center of town. Seeing that stoked a fire that was rising within himself…it was now or never he guessed.
"Um… Ayanami?" She turned her head towards him as he took a deep breath; just let the words out, he tried to tell himself. "Would you… like to go to the lake with me this weekend? We could have a picnic or something."
She tried the smile again; it came more naturally to her as she answered the boy who showed so much concern for her. "I would like that, Ikari-kun." Her response was weak, but sure as she slowly lost her strength due to the strain of the attack. She laid her head upon the boy's shoulder and let herself fall asleep against him. He panicked with a blush at first but relaxed a moment later looking at her peacefully resting on him. He smiled and said softly, "Thank you, Ayanami…"
(A.N.) - Hey everyone! I know this chapter was kind of short, but I decided to split it in two because the two parts of this together didn't flow well together (especially since they're separated by a few days). Read onward with Chapter 5 to get the rest of the story. See you there!
